


save me, anchor me, love me

by fallingforboys



Series: watch the wilted flowers stand tall again as we dare to dream [6]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Corey Bryant & Theo Raeken Friendship, Fluff and Humor, Good Theo Raeken, M/M, Marriage Proposal, McCall Pack, Puppy Pack (Teen Wolf), Theo Raeken & Brett Talbot Friendship, Theo Raeken & Stiles Stilinski Friendship, Theo Raeken is Part of the Pack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-01-27
Packaged: 2021-03-12 17:33:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29014395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallingforboys/pseuds/fallingforboys
Summary: “Holy fucking shit.”Theo whipped around to find Brett at his dresser, staring into one of the drawers.Shit. The chimera had a pretty good idea what his friend had found.
Relationships: Liam Dunbar/Theo Raeken, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Series: watch the wilted flowers stand tall again as we dare to dream [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2107209
Comments: 12
Kudos: 97





	save me, anchor me, love me

**Author's Note:**

> This is absolutely my favorite thing that I have ever written, I hope you guys like it as much as I do!

“Holy _fucking_ shit.”

Theo whipped around to find Brett at his dresser, staring into one of the drawers. 

_Shit_. The chimera had a pretty good idea what his friend had found.

“Brett-”

“You fucking _asshole_ ,” Brett cut him off, turning around to face the older boy. “You didn’t even tell me.”

In the werewolf’s hand was a small black box, opened to reveal the engagement ring inside. Theo quickly listened for heartbeats in the house, making sure they were the only ones there before walking to his friend and snatching the box out of his hands. 

“I was going to,” he said lamely, snapping the box shut. 

Brett snorted, unamused. “Oh, yeah? When? After you proposed?”

“ _No_ ,” the chimera retorted hastily. “Just not… yet.”

“I can’t believe you went and got a ring without telling me. I should be furious right now,” the werewolf said, annoyed as he crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back against the dresser. 

“Yeah, and Scott’s gonna be mad that _he_ wasn’t the first one to know, and then Corey will be offended that I didn’t tell _him_ first. And _then_ , Stiles is gonna be pissed that you three found out before him,” Theo said wearily, already dreading the others’ reactions. “So if you’re furious, get in line, because at least you’re the first to know.”

Brett mulled over the chimera’s words, and then grinned. “You’re right, I _am_ the first. I’m _so_ gonna rub this in all their faces.”

Theo threw a shoe at the younger boy. “Absolutely not. I already started writing my will in my head, cause they’re all gonna _freak_ ,” he emphasized, plopping down onto his bed. “I died once, and I’m not planning on going through it again.”

The werewolf smirked, and settled down next to him. “So…” he dragged out the word, his voice lifting at the end. “When’s it happening?”

“As of right now, never. I got the ring _two days ago_ , Brett,” Theo grumbled, running a hand through his hair. “I have _no_ plan whatsoever.”

The chimera suddenly registered another heartbeat in the house. He closed his eyes, honing in on the pulse, which had spiked. _Fuck_. 

The bedroom door slammed open, revealing a _fuming_ Scott McCall. Theo jumped up and moved behind Brett, using his friend as a very amused shield against the alpha. 

“You got a _ring_ ,” Scott growled, his steps into the room accurately resembling a wild animal about to attack its prey. “And you didn’t _tell_ me.”

“If it helps, I only found out like two minutes ago,” Brett chirped, happily reveling in the fact that A) he found out before Scott did and B) his words _didn’t_ help the situation _at all_ and the alpha was still _pissed_. 

Theo yelped as Scott moved closer to the bed, hastily trying to explain. “I got the ring _two days_ ago. And I was gonna tell you first,” the chimera jumped at Scott’s snarl, “I _swear_. Brett wasn’t supposed to find out, he went looking through my drawers.”

Brett let out a betrayed sound, smacking his best friend’s shoulder, but Scott suddenly seemed a lot more calm than he was a second before. “Was it your underwear drawer?” he asked with a straight face and a tilted head, but Theo heard his voice quiver with restrained amusement. 

The chimera snickered, instantly reminded of how Isaac had found about Scott’s proposal months ago. “No, fortunately for me, Brett isn’t _completely_ an asshole, and I’m not stupid enough to hide it with my _underwear_.”

The two werewolves let out low growls, Brett at being called an asshole, and Scott at being called stupid. Theo quickly raised his hands in surrender, because he did _not_ want to die before he got to propose. Scott sat on the bed next to the two boys, turning to the chimera. “So, when are you proposing?”

Theo groaned. “You were literally listening when I told Brett that I don’t have a plan to propose.”

“So,” Scott perked up, “We get to help you make one?”

“No.”

Brett and Scott immediately started arguing with him. “What do you mean, _no_?” the older werewolf asked. “You don’t have one and we know that you’re gonna propose. The logical conclusion would be to let us help.”

“You two are _shit_ at keeping secrets,” Theo scoffed, leaning against the headboard. “If I let you in on this, the _whole pack’s_ gonna know in an hour.”

“We _already know_ ,” Brett pointed out annoyingly. “We could go tell the pack right now if we wanted to.”

“Unless I tie you guys up and lock you in my closet until I propose,” the chimera snapped, narrowing his eyes at the werewolves who didn’t look very scared by the threat. 

“ _Please_ , Theo, we want to help,” Scott whined, using his puppy-dog eyes on him. Unfortunately for him, he was immune to puppy-dog eyes. _Except for Liam’s_ , his brain supplied helpfully. Theo mentally flipped his brain off. 

But Scott and Brett weren’t really giving the chimera a choice, and ten minutes, three arguments, and one broken wrist later, Theo reluctantly agreed to letting them help.

“You know you’re gonna have to tell Stiles and Corey, right?” Brett reminded him, and the chimera sighed heavily. 

He should probably start writing down his will. 

__________________________________

Telling Stiles and Corey went exactly like Theo had expected it to. 

The chimera winced as another shoe hit the wall of his room, two inches away from his face. Brett and Scott were no help, sitting on his bed snickering as Stiles and Corey continued pelting various objects at him. 

“ _Okay_ ,” Theo finally yelled, “Can you guys _please_ stop throwing things now? I’m sorry I didn’t tell you when I got the ring.”

“Brett, I get, he’s your best friend,” Corey said, glaring at Theo. “But you told _Scott_ before _me_?”

The alpha let out an indignant cry at the chimera’s words, but he was ignored as Corey continued glowering at Theo.

“ _Hey_ ,” Stiles interjected, “ _I_ should’ve been the first to know, not any of you idiots.” And that started another round of argument between the four boys, Theo internally groaning at what he had gotten himself into. 

“GUYS!” the chimera finally snapped, interrupting their petty argument. “You four are the first to know, okay? And considering how many people are in the pack, I’d say that’s _pretty good_ , so can you just stop arguing and _help me_ like you’re supposed to be doing?”

The four boys sheepishly looked at Theo, who was breathing heavily by the time he finished yelling. “Sorry, Theo,” Corey said and the other boys immediately chimed in.

Theo waved off their apologies, sliding down against the wall to sit on the floor. “I told you guys so you’d _help_ , not because I wanted to listen to you arguing who deserved to know first. But now that that’s _finally_ out of the way,” the chimera looked up at his friends, “What the fuck do I do?”

Stiles sat against the bed across from Theo, and Brett, Scott, and Corey joined them on the floor, creating a circle in the room. “Nothing we talk about in here leaves this room, got it?” the human pressed, turning to look at Brett and Corey. “Not even to your boyfriends.”

Corey looked guilty at having to keep this from Mason, but he nodded, because if Mason found out, it would only be a matter of _seconds_ before Liam knew. Brett rolled his eyes at Stiles’ threatening gaze, but he saluted, letting out a sarcastic, “Yes, sir.”

“Wait, Theo, you never showed us the ring,” the human suddenly pointed out, and the other boys perked up, asking the chimera where it was. He rolled his eyes, getting up to grab the box from his drawer. He opened it and put it on the ground in the middle of the circle and Corey gasped when he saw it as the other boys’ eyes widened. 

“ _Anchors_ ,” the other chimera whispered, and Theo flushed slightly and nodded. He had gotten a small anchor engraved on the ring, a tribute to the reason the relationship between him and Liam had shifted months ago. The group all praised the chimera’s taste and the thought that he had put into the ring, but eventually, it was put away in order to start planning.

“Okay, _now_ ,” Scott started, leaning forward into the circle, “First thing we need to do is decide on a place.”

Everyone started talking at once, calling out various locations in Beacon Hills, Brett even going as far as suggesting the tunnels, because that’s where Liam brought Theo back. The chimera had shot that one down _immediately_ , with a hard glare at his best friend. Fifteen minutes later, the group _finally_ settled on the lacrosse field, agreeing that the wide space would be perfect. 

Theo’s phone buzzed. “Liam?” he asked curiously when he picked up. He was at Mason’s house, doing some sort of annual video game ritual, and told Theo not to disturb them for the entire afternoon. 

“We had sex, right?”

Theo choked on air, as the other boys in the room started to silently laugh. “ _What?_ ”

“Just answer the question,” Liam said impatiently. “Mason doesn’t believe me, and I am _not_ losing this argument.”

“Liam, are you _serious?_ ” the chimera asked him, his cheeks burning as Brett started taking pictures of him. 

“ _Yes_ , I’m serious, Theo. Answer the fucking question so we can all move on.”

“Yes.”

“Perfect. _See_ , I wasn’t lying.”

And then Liam hung up. Theo pulled the phone away from his ear, staring at the screen blankly, his mind trying to process what just happened. Stiles had been trying to hold in his snickers but once the werewolf cut the call, he couldn’t anymore, and _exploded_. Brett and Corey were no better, actual _tears_ leaking out of their eyes because of how hard they had been laughing. 

“I don’t know whether to be amused or concerned that that was a topic of discussion between Liam and Mason,” Scott noted with a small smirk, and Theo broke out of his daze. 

“Okay, pretending that _never_ happened,” the chimera stated, tossing his phone next to him as he turned back to the group, “We need to find a way to get everything onto the lacrosse field.”

“I’m still stuck on the fact that Mason didn’t believe Liam that you guys ha-” Stiles broke off when he saw Theo’s scowl. “Right, the lacrosse field.”

“We need to do it without Coach finding out,” Brett added, sending the pictures he took of Theo to a group chat with just them. 

“Not necessarily,” Scott said slowly, tilting his head as he looked at the group. “Coach _loves_ Liam, even if he doesn’t show it. If he realized that the proposal was for one of his favorite players, he might be willing to let us use the field.”

Theo let out a breath. “Well, what are we waiting for then? Let’s go convince your coach.”

Stiles grinned widely. “Don’t worry, guys. Coach _loves_ me, there’s no way he’ll say no.”

__________________________________

“No.”

Theo groaned softly as Stiles cried out “But it’s for _Liam_!”

“I don’t care _who_ it’s for,” the coach said, glaring at the group of boys, “You’re not using the field because you’re all profoundly sentimental idiots who decided to get engaged when you’re barely out of high school.”

Scott sighed. “Coach, _please_. Theo _really_ wants this proposal to be perfect, and there’s nothing Liam would love more than a proposal on the field,” the alpha explained gently.

“And you should be happy,” Stiles cut in, “The _captain_ of the lacrosse team is getting engaged to the love of his life.”

“Co-captain,” Brett muttered under his breath, _his_ boyfriend was a captain too, while Theo’s chest warmed at hearing the words “love of his life.” Liam’s _love of his life_ was _him_. Holy fucking shit. 

Coach narrowed his eyes at Theo, the only one of the boys that had never been on the lacrosse team. He must’ve seen something that pleased him, because he stared for a few more moments before rolling his eyes. “Fine. Have your disgustingly sweet proposal on the field. But if I see _one_ piece of confetti on that field,” he said, turning his head to look at every single one of them, “You can bet your asses that you’ll be deep-cleaning the entire thing. With your _hands_.”

The boys nodded hastily, before hightailing it out of the office. Only after they were back outside did Theo let out a breath, relieved that the location was set. 

“Don’t worry,” Scott reassured the chimera, with a hand on his shoulder, “This is gonna be perfect. Liam will be _speechless_.”

The chimera squeezed his eyes shut. “I really hope so.”

An hour later, they were all back in Theo’s room, the floor completely covered in sheets of paper of various ideas and plans. Just as the chimera tilted his head back against the wall in frustration, the door opened, and everyone _panicked_. Stiles and Corey shoved all the papers under the bed quickly, as Brett and Theo jumped up to stand in front of them. Scott leapt onto the bed, trying to act casual, which, unfortunately for them, did not work. 

Melissa raised an eyebrow. “You wanna tell me what’s going on or should I call Chris to torture it out of you?”

Theo let out a small sigh, before lifting his gaze to meet Melissa’s. “I’m proposing.”

Her jaw dropped and she stood frozen before letting out a short squeal and running over to give the chimera a tight hug. “Why was I not the first to know?” she asked, her eyes narrowing at Theo. 

“Not you too,” the chimera whined, and Melissa grinned to let him know she was just messing around. “Is Argent here? I should probably tell him too while I’m at it.”

“Tell me what?”

Argent was leaning against the doorway, his arms crossed as he stared at Theo, waiting. 

“Um, I’m proposing to Liam,” the chimera said softly, and the former hunter broke out into a wide grin. He walked over to clasp his shoulder, and Stiles clapped once. 

“Great, now that everyone’s caught up, we still need to figure out the rest of the plan,” the human announced. “The only thing we have right now is that we’re doing it on the field.”

“You’re _proposing_ on the _lacrosse field?_ ” Melissa questioned disbelievingly. 

“Liam loves lacrosse,” Theo defended, crossing his arms as he sat down on the bed next to Brett. She raised her hands in concession. 

“Did you decide on a day?”

“I was thinking…” the chimera trailed off, looking around at the group, “Friday?”

“Friday?” Stiles shrieked. “That’s in _four days!_ ”

“I’m well aware of how the calendar works, Stiles, thank you,” Theo said dryly, flinching slightly when Scott smacked his shoulder. 

“Four days is nowhere _near_ enough time,” the human continued, his eyes growing wider with every word. “We might as well quit while we’re ahead.”

“Stiles, shut the fuck up,” Brett snapped, sensing Theo’s apprehension. “If anyone can pull this off, it’s _us_. So stop complaining and start _planning_.”

Theo gave his best friend a grateful look. Their friendship might consist _mostly_ of insults, threats, and quips, but they both understood each other like no else could. Except for Liam and Nolan, _obviously_. The chimera fell back, his head landing on Scott’s legs. “We need to get a lot of orange skittles.”

“What the fuck?” Corey asked, voicing the confusion that echoed from the rest of the people in the room. 

“They’re his favorite,” Theo explained, fidgeting with the bottom of his shirt. “And one time when he was half-asleep, he said that if he ever got proposed to, he’d want orange skittles to be a part of it. 

The entire group looked at the chimera incredulously. “What?”

“How did you even remember that?” Stiles asked, his brows furrowed. 

Theo flushed. “I have a good memory.”

“That, and you hang onto every word that comes out of Liam’s mouth like it’s a life or death situation,” Brett added helpfully, and the older boy flipped him off. 

“Okay,” Scott declared, “Add orange skittles to the list.”

__________________________________

“Did Mason really not believe you?”

Liam snorted softly, drawing random shapes on Theo’s chest as he snuggled closer to the chimera on the bed. “Yeah, he said I was probably thinking of the time I got wasted and kept hitting on you and that I was just making shit up in my head.”

Theo laughed, bringing a hand up to rest on his boyfriend’s hair. “To his credit, you _would_ do that,” the chimera teased, and the werewolf smacked him gently. “How was the annual video game ritual?”

“Oh my god, it’s not a _ritual_ ,” Liam said, exasperated. “It’s just something we’ve done since we were kids and never outgrew.” He pushed his face further into the chimera’s neck. “It was fun, but I missed you.”

Theo’s heart soared. “I missed you too,” he whispered into the dark room, hearing Liam’s pleased hum. 

“What’d you do?”

The chimera had never been more glad that he had been trained to control his heartbeat and chemosignals. “Just hung out with Brett and the other guys. I have _friends_ , you know?”

Liam snickered quietly. “Yeah, yeah, you’re Mr. Popular now, I know. I can’t believe _Scott_ likes you more than me now.”

“I wouldn’t go _that_ far.”

“Oh, I _would_. I asked him if he wanted to join our video game thing, and he tried to turn me down in the nicest way possible, saying he’d rather stay with you instead.”

Theo’s cheeks warmed, and he felt a sudden appreciation for his alpha. “Maybe he just didn’t want to sit around playing video games for six hours with people two years younger than him?”

“You’re not _that_ much older than me, Theo,” the werewolf mumbled, “You skipped a grade, remember?”

“Still older,” the chimera sang, and Liam hit him again, suddenly lifting his head up. Their close proximity left almost no space between their faces, and the mood suddenly shifted, Liam’s eyes growing darker. 

“Did I ever thank you for taking care of me when I got drunk?” the younger boy asked casually, but the expression on his face was anything but. 

Theo’s breath hitched as he shook his head slowly. 

“I think I should get on that.”

And Theo could do nothing but watch as Liam’s head disappeared under the blanket. 

__________________________________

“You and Liam have a fun night?”

Theo choked on his cereal, his head snapping up to Derek’s amused face. He stayed silent, but it was no use- the werewolf already got his answer. “Please tell me you didn’t tell Stiles.”

Derek snorted. “Scott burst into the room, asking me if he was just hearing things, and Stiles got curious. So, _no_ ,” the older werewolf grinned, “ _I_ didn’t tell Stiles. But he knows.”

“He’s gonna be so obnoxious,” the chimera groaned, burying his head in his arms. And right on cue, Scott and Stiles entered the kitchen. The human smirked as his eyes landed on Theo.

“Hey, Theo,” he said as he got himself water, “I heard something hit the wall in your room last night, is your _head_ okay?”

“Fuck off,” the chimera grumbled, his cheeks darkening. 

“No, really, it sounded bad,” Stiles said, faking concern. “Do we need to take you to the hospital? Or did Liam _make you feel better?_ ” he asked, referencing the beta’s drunk words from a few months ago. 

“You _really_ want to do this Stiles?” Theo asked, growling. “I have _months_ of your phone calls to Scott stored in my mind. Which one do you think the pack wants to hear first? The one about the time you snuck Derek into the FBI to have sex in the bathroom?” 

Stiles blanched. 

“Or _maybe_ , the one about when someone asked you who Derek was and you panicked and told them he was your _brother?_ ” Theo’s eyes glistened as he said the next one, “But I think the one they’d _really_ like to hear is how Derek and you got _married_ in Vegas.”

Derek’s mug slipped out of his hands, landing sideways on the counter, as Stiles’ eyes widened in shock. Scott’s brows furrowed, as he muttered out a confused “ _What?_ ”

“How did- We never told anyone that,” Stiles blurted out, still gaping at Theo. “How do you know that?”

Theo shrugged, the grin on his face not fading.

“ _Theo_ ,” Derek growled, and the chimera sighed.

“When Isaac brought up that someone was gonna propose a few months ago, I figured out pretty quickly that it was Scott,” Theo answered. “ _But_ , Derek’s heartbeat was a little _too_ steady for it to be normal, and his jaw was clenched. And then you mentioned that you had gone to Vegas for some FBI thing, and Derek’s pulse skipped for a second.” The chimera looked up at the couple. “I just connected the dots.”

“You guys are _married?_ ” Scott hissed out, turning to Stiles. “And you were mad when I didn’t tell you about my _proposal?_ ”

Stiles winced. “I’m _sorry_ ,” he rushed out. “We both got super drunk that night, and the next thing we knew, we were waking up hungover with rings on our fingers and a marriage certificate on the bed.”

“And you didn’t think to _tell me?_ ” the alpha said, hurt rolling off him in waves.

“I told him not to,” Derek interjected, finally breaking his silence. “If we were gonna get married, I wanted to do it right, not a drunk Vegas marriage that neither of us could even remember. So we both agreed to pretend it never happened. Which was going _fine_ , until Theo outed us,” the werewolf said, glaring at the chimera. 

Theo raised his hands in surrender. “It was bound to come out at some point. You guys _are_ still technically married.”

Stiles slumped into a chair. “I just wanted to make fun of Theo for last night, not get my drunk marriage exposed, god,” he said, banging his head on the table. “This stays between us, got it?”

Scott and Theo nodded immediately, they weren’t gonna expose the couple to the rest of the pack, no matter what the chimera had said before. Stiles let out a deep breath. “Is Liam still sleeping?”

Theo hummed, getting up to put his bowl in the sink. “Brett and Corey are coming at one, and Liam and Mason are taking Alec and Lori to the museum after that. Apparently they have a history project, and no tour guide can beat Liam’s knowledge.”

Stiles snorted. “Who knew little Liam was a history freak?”

“I did,” the chimera retorted, recalling the time at the zoo, the first time he realized that his feelings for the beta might be a _little_ past just friends. 

“You don’t count, asshole,” the human said and Theo flipped him off.

A few hours later, the chimera was in the process of making lunch when Brett and Corey finally showed up, and Scott had declared the start of the official Proposal Planning Committee meeting. Corey had immediately changed their group chat name to PPC after that. 

“Okay, for the orange skittles,” Stiles began, “I was thinking we make a red carpet, but with the _skittles_.”

The chimera blinked. “Stiles, that is the _worst_ idea I’ve ever heard.”

“Well, I don’t see you making any suggestions,” the human snapped, and Theo rolled his eyes. 

“I was thinking more along the lines of using the skittles to spell out ‘Will you marry me?’ on the field. I’ll bring Liam up to the bleachers, and when he looks down, it’ll be there.”

The group turned to stare at him. “What?” Theo asked defensively. 

“Do you even need us?” Scott asked him, “Cause you seem pretty fine by yourself.”

Theo let out a short laugh, his heartbeat settling again. “ _Yes_ , I need you guys. I can’t do all of this by myself. Plus, the skittles are only _part_ of it.”

“What else does the proposal need?” Corey wondered out loud, and Brett's eyes lit up and he turned to Theo, a smirk pulling up the corner of his mouth. 

Stiles noticed the exchange. “What? What’s happening?”

“A _reenactment_ ,” Brett drawled, and Theo’s eyes widened. 

Understanding dawned on Scott, and his brows furrowed. “We’d need to involve the whole pack then. And we need to choose the actors for Liam and Theo.”

Stiles grabbed a piece of paper from the counter, pulling out a pen. “This is gonna be the best fucking proposal Liam has _ever_ seen,” he said, and Theo couldn’t help but agree with him. 

__________________________________

“Isaac, _no_ ,” Theo snapped at the blond, “I didn’t say ‘I’m impressed’ and then _kiss_ _Liam_. Stop fucking this up with your improv.”

The tall werewolf snickered as he stepped away from Stiles. The reenactment practice was going just as well as expected- fucking _terribly_. The group had agreed on casting Stiles as Liam and Isaac as Theo, since they did _so well_ with the last reenactment, but the two were ignoring everything the chimera was saying in favor of adding their own twists.

Theo took a deep breath, and Scott patted his shoulder sympathetically. Almost the whole pack was here, save for Liam, Mason, and Nolan, who were at Liam’s house doing chores for Mrs. Geyer. Theo had let her in on his plan, and she had shrieked in excitement before agreeing to keep the boys busy for as long as he needed. 

They had a stage set up on the field, brought in by _Peter_. No one dared to question where he got it from. On the day of the actual proposal, Theo would lay the skittles down on the field, and move the stage on top of them for the play. After that was done, the pack would remove it as Theo would be up on the bleachers with Liam. It was a solid plan, but it was quickly falling apart, because the two assholes who were supposed to be playing Liam and Theo wouldn’t _fucking_ listen.

“GUYS!” Theo screamed, and the pack fell silent. “The proposal is in _two fucking days_ , and the reenactment is _nowhere_ near ready. So can everyone stop fucking around and be _serious_ for once?”

The chimera’s anxiety seemed to have been really obvious, because everyone nodded quickly and got into position. Isaac and Stiles stood at center stage, and Cora, Lydia, Malia, Corey, and Brett were in the back, in charge of changing the props and backdrop during each setting shift. 

And… it _worked_. Theo had gone through every significant moment in his and Liam’s history, from the moment the werewolf brought him back from hell, to in the car searching for the keys to escape the Wild Hunt. The story continued, showing Liam saving Theo from one of the Ghost Riders, Theo saying he would be the bait, and coming to save Liam right after. It showed them at the zoo, fake-fighting to draw the hunters’ attention, Theo stopping Liam before he could kill Gabe, and Theo at the hospital, pulling Liam into the elevator before the hunters could shoot him. The ending scene was a recreation of the day that the werewolf had found out that Theo was homeless, except it ended with Stiles as Liam saying he heard something from Lydia about a _ring_. 

That was when, if everything went according to plan, everyone would jump off stage and move it to reveal the skittles. They rehearsed the play completely through three times, and Theo almost cried when everything went perfectly the last time. Melissa hugged him tight when she noticed, telling him that she was so proud of how far he had come. And that’s when the chimera had actually broken down. 

After he calmed down, he quickly walked over to Stiles and Isaac and hugged them. “Thank you,” he whispered, and Isaac patted his head. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever had as much fun as I’ve had playing you,” the werewolf said, grinning. “This proposal’s gonna be fucking _amazing_.”

Stiles agreed, and the whole pack slowly dispersed, agreeing to meet back at the field at two on Friday to set everything up.

__________________________________

This was it. Today was the day Theo was going to propose to Liam, and he felt like he was gonna throw up. Scott was on Liam duty, making up some excuse to take the beta out after lunch, and the two left, the alpha subtly nodding to Theo on his way out. He was going to bring the werewolf to the field at three, giving them an hour to set up all the skittles and move the stage. 

Stiles and Isaac had both gotten deeply involved in playing the characters, and had even stolen shirts from Theo’s closet to dress the part.

Soon, it was two o’clock, and the pack made their way to the field, stuffing the back of Theo’s truck with bags and bags of skittles. They had pretty much emptied out the store’s supply, and the cashier gave them an accusing glare as he rang up all the bags. It had been _expensive_ , but Peter had funded the entire proposal, even paying for the props and backdrops. Theo didn’t know what he did for the older werewolf for him to even _consider_ doing this for him, but he had simply accepted it and thanked him extensively. 

Fifty minutes later, everything was ready, and Theo felt like he was going to faint from the anticipation and anxiety. Now he knew how Scott felt that day, but the alpha had covered it up fairly well. The same could not be said for the chimera. 

“ _Theo_ ,” Brett pressed as he sat next to his best friend, who had a slightly crazed look in his eyes. “Look around. Everything’s _perfect_. Liam’s gonna love it, and he’s gonna say yes.”

The chimera shifted his eyes around the field, watching Stiles and Isaac practicing their lines on the stage, Malia and Cora coordinating how they would move the car backdrop to the hospital one, Melissa, Noah, and Argent discussing where the cameras would be set up, because if Theo was going all out, there was no fucking way they weren’t recording all of it. His pack was _here_ , all helping him propose to the _love of his life_. The weight in Theo’s chest dissipated, and he could suddenly _breathe_ again. 

Brett was watching him carefully as he took a few deep breaths, and a small smile made its way onto Theo’s face. “Thank you,” he said to his friend, and the werewolf merely nodded, but the chimera knew that he had understood what he meant. 

Theo checked his phone, his heart dropping when he realized he only had about two minutes until Scott would show up with Liam. He got the pack’s attention, telling everyone to get into position. His pulse spiked as he heard a car in the distance, and Liam’s voice drifted towards them. 

“What are we doing here?” the werewolf questioned, but the alpha didn’t respond, just pushing him onto the field, and Liam’s eyes widened at the sight. Scott continued pushing Liam, up the bleachers towards Theo, who smiled nervously at his boyfriend. The werewolf sat down next to the chimera.

“Theo? What’s going o-”

The older boy shushed him. “The show’s about to start.”

Liam looked even _more_ confused now, but he didn’t say anything as he turned towards the field, watching as Stiles (dressed as Liam) appeared on the stage. A fake sword was driven into the ground causing smoke to fill the air, and when all of it disappeared, Isaac (as Theo) was standing, shifted as he growled at Stiles. 

Theo chanced a quick glance at the boy next to him, and his mouth tilted up slightly when he noticed that the werewolf had recognized the scene. He turned back to see that the scene had changed, moving to the Wild Hunt car one. Liam snickered when he heard Stiles yell “Go, go, go!” after they finally found the right key. 

The setting shifted again, showing them at the hospital, Stiles maneuvering around to ‘shoot’ the Ghost Rider that had Isaac in a choke hold. Peter had been all too willing to play the part of the Ghost Rider, and Theo wasn’t going to deny him the pleasure when he had basically paid for the whole thing. He watched as Peter flew back, disappearing as more smoke filled the stage. 

“What are you doing?” Stiles' voice called out, lying on the floor of the elevator, and watched as Isaac turned around and smirked.

“Being the bait.”

Liam inhaled sharply, apparently remembering that day vividly. The two boys on the bleachers observed as the scene shifted, Stiles getting attacked by Peter, before Isaac appeared, ‘stabbing’ the Ghost Rider with his claws. 

“You know how to ride a horse?” Isaac called out. 

Stiles’ “Not really” echoed in the field as both boys disappeared off stage. 

Theo watched as Cora and Malia slid the zoo backdrop into view, Stiles staring out an opening to the side as Isaac stood in front of him. The scene played out, Stiles explaining his plan to lure the hunters in.

“What? I like history,” Stiles said defensively, swiveling his head back to face Isaac, and the werewolf stared at him for a few moments, not saying anything. 

“I’m impressed,” he finally said, keeping his gaze solely on Stiles. 

And the show went on. 

Isaac yelling at Stiles to draw the hunters' attention, Stiles punching Isaac _three times_ , Isaac smiling at Stiles in the car when he told him he had to knock him out five times. 

Stiles pushing Gabe (Mason) into a mirror, before Isaac appeared and taunted him until Stiles let him go. 

And then they were back at the hospital, Stiles with his back to the elevator when it opened and Isaac dragged him back into it. 

“I’m not dying for you,” Isaac’s voice was loud in the silent field.

“I’m not dying for you, either,” Stiles replied, his jaw clenched. “But… I will fight with you.”

Isaac smirked, tilting his head to the side. “Then let’s fight.”

And it arrived. The final scene. The backdrop changed _one last time_ , to Scott’s kitchen. 

“You’re _pack_ ,” Stiles' voice rang out as he shoved Isaac back. “Our _friend_.” Liam let out a breath as he recognized what moment this was. 

“You need to calm down, Liam, you’re shifting,” Isaac _finally_ said, and Theo’s heart began to pick up. The end was near, and his nerves had suddenly all reappeared. 

“I heard this theory from Lydia a while ago,” Stiles whispered, but Liam and Theo heard it just fine. “Something about a _ring_.”

Smoke exploded on the stage, everyone jumping off. Liam gasped as he processed what Stiles had just said, and he stared with wide eyes as the stage was moved, revealing “Will you marry me?’ written in orange skittles on the field. 

“Holy shit,” Liam breathed out, and he turned to the side to find Theo kneeling on one knee, holding up a ring. “Holy shit,” he repeated.

“Liam Dunbar,” the chimera said, his voice quivering with nervousness, “You’ve been with me through everything, from when I was just reluctantly helping you to when I joined the pack. You’re my anchor, which I took a stupidly long time to figure out, and when I picture the future, you’re the only one I can imagine spending it with, so,” Theo paused to catch his breath. “Will you marry me?”

The werewolf was frozen, staring at Theo, tears building in his eyes. He blinked out of his shock, letting out a shaky breath. “Yes,” he murmured, clearing his throat before speaking again, his voice louder. “ _Yes_ , yes, holy fucking shit, _yes_.”

Theo slid the ring onto his finger, barely getting it all the way on before Liam was tilting his head up, pressing their lips together hard. Cheers erupted from the pack from the field, and Theo smiled into the kiss. They finally pulled apart when they ran out of air, staying wrapped in each other's arms, grinning widely.

“ _Hey_ , lovebirds, get down here,” Stiles called out, and Theo raised his eyebrow at Liam. The werewolf nodded, laughing, and they ran down the stairs, meeting their pack on the ground. 

Scott was the first one to hug them, wrapping both of them up in his embrace, whispering how happy he was for them. After that, it was a long sequence of hugs and congratulations, but Theo and Liam were smiling the whole time. 

“Are those orange skittles?” Liam suddenly asked after they had finished hugging everyone. Theo laughed while nodding. “You _remembered_ that?”

Brett snorted. “You’ll never have to worry about Theo not listening to you, Liam. He’s fucking _whipped_.” And the chimera was too happy to even retort. 

“And the play,” Liam continued, turning to Stiles and Isaac. “You guys reenacted _everything_. It was _perfect_.”

Stiles ruffled the beta’s hair and threw an arm around Theo’s shoulder. “We wanted to add a few kisses in there, but Mr. Stick-to-the-Script here refused.”

Theo shoved Stiles lightly, rolling his eyes. “It was supposed to be _accurate_.”

“I can’t believe you did all this,” Liam breathed out, “For _me_.”

The chimera stared into his boyfriend’s, no _fiancé’s_ , bright blue eyes. “I would do _anything_ for you, Liam. _Always_.”

The younger boy gaped for a few moments before lunging forward to kiss him again. The pack cheered again, and Theo could hear some wolf-whistles in the mix. 

“Okay, okay, break it up, Dunbar,” a new voice drifted over to them, and Theo pulled back quickly. Walking towards them was _Coach_ , his whistle around his neck. 

“ _Coach?_ ” Liam asked incredulously. “What are you doing here?”

“If someone’s gonna use _my_ field for a proposal, I’m damn well gonna make sure they don’t mess it up,” the coach scoffed, but when the chimera looked closely, he realized that his eyes were _watery_. “And that proposal was one of the most disgusting things I’ve ever seen in my life.”

No one said anything, and just watched as the coach sighed. “But… I’m happy that you got your happy ending, Dunbar,” he rushed out, before turning to the rest of the pack with a glare on his face. “If any of you repeat what just happened to _anyone_ , you’ll be running suicides till you die.”

The pack saluted, and the coach nodded, satisfied, before walking away. Liam watched his figure in the distance. “I can’t believe that just happened.”

“Well,” Mason said, putting a hand on his best friend’s shoulder, “ _believe it._ ”

Liam froze, turning to Theo. “We’re engaged.”

The chimera smirked at the younger boy’s wide eyes and dazed expression. “We’re engaged,” he confirmed. 

“We’re _fucking_ engaged!” Liam yelled, whooping loudly as he jumped onto Theo, wrapping his legs around the chimera’s back. The older boy stumbled back a step before catching his balance and hugging Liam back just as tightly. 

Liam lifted his head back slightly before grabbing Theo’s collar and pulling him in for a soft kiss. The chimera sank into the touch, and the voices and whistles in the background faded away. He heard the click of a camera though, but Theo didn’t care. 

He wanted to remember this moment forever. 

__________________________________

“No, absolutely not,” Theo said, yanking the bottle out of Liam’s hand. “I’m not letting you do this again.”

The werewolf pouted. “But we just got _engaged_. I’m celebrating.”

“Yeah, Theo, stop being a _loser_ ,” Stiles drawled, dragging the last word out. “If Liam wants to drink, let him drink.”

The chimera rolled his eyes, holding the bottle above his head as his fiancé reached for it. “You just want drunk Liam to make an appearance again so you can make fun of him tomorrow.”

Brett threw an arm over Stiles’ shoulder, leaning heavily on the human as he was already pretty drunk. “Obviously,” he said, his words slurred, “Drunk Liam is way better than normal Liam.”

Liam paused his jumping to smack Brett’s shoulder. “ _Theo_ , c’mon, let me have it.” And then he used his puppy-dog eyes.

_Fuck_. 

Scott’s, he could resist. Liam’s, he absolutely could _not_.

“Fine,” he sighed out, giving the bottle to the beta. The werewolf’s face lit up and he brushed a quick kiss on Theo’s cheeks before running off to god knows where to get wasted. 

“You’re so whipped,” a new voice said, and Theo glanced to the side to see Malia and Scott next to him, their hands intertwined. The chimera rolled his eyes for the second time in the last minute at the werecoyote’s words, crossing his arms over his chest. 

“Yeah, yeah, I got it,” Theo grumbled. “I can’t wait for his filter to completely stop working and for everyone to make fun of us again,” he said sarcastically, already dreading drunk Liam. 

“Don’t worry,” Scott grinned, patting his shoulder, “I’ll make sure they’re not _too_ mean, you _did_ just get engaged.”

Theo snorted- the alpha would do no such thing. He had as much fun as Stiles and Isaac did last time even though he tried not to show it. “You forgot that I can hear your heart, asshole.”

Malia slung an arm over Theo’s shoulder, snickering. “This is _your_ engagement party, you’re supposed to be having fun, not babysitting your fiancé.” The chimera protested as she dragged him to the drinks. “We’re getting you _wasted_ tonight.”

Three hours later, that’s exactly what Theo was. He had his head resting on Alec’s stretched out leg on the floor, staring in awe at his fingers. “Alec, look, I have _twenty_ fingers,” he bubbled, shoving his hands in the young werewolf’s face. “I’m the coolest chimera _ever_.”

Alec chuckled softly, as the other people in the room snickered at the chimera’s childlike wonder at seeing double. 

“I think you might’ve had a little too much, Theo,” Scott noted, and Theo scowled. 

“Fuck you, I’m fine.” He abruptly stood up, almost falling down, but managing to catch himself at the last second. “See, I can walk fine.” He stumbled over to the entrance of the living room, shrieking victoriously when he made it without falling on his face. He turned to boast, but contrary to what he had said to Scott, Theo was five bottles past wasted, and he suddenly found himself on the floor, staring up at Liam, who had heard the commotion in the living room and poked his head in from the kitchen to see what was going on. 

“You’re drunk, aren’t you?” Liam’s face was amused as he looked down at his fiancé, and Theo didn’t get up from the floor. _Hey_ , it was comfortable, okay? 

“No, _you’re_ drunk,” the chimera retorted, and the beta reached down to haul Theo off the floor, putting him down on the couch next to Brett. Theo immediately put his head in his friend’s lap and stretched out horizontally, and Brett looked at him with a mix of amusement and bewilderment on his face. 

“You’re warm,” Theo mumbled quietly as he closed his eyes. 

He felt Brett pat his shoulder. “Okay, buddy.” Theo’s legs lifted, and he opened an eye to see Liam sitting down and placing his legs back on his lap. The chimera suddenly shifted, lifting his head off of Brett to rest it on Liam’s shoulder instead, his arms wrapping around the beta’s waist as he basically sat on his lap. He felt the werewolf’s chest vibrate as he chuckled at Theo’s actions, and he pressed his face further into Liam’s neck. 

He closed his eyes again, enjoying the closeness of his fiancé. But he heard the pack guffawing in the background, and opened them again, annoyed, as he turned his head. 

“So drunk Liam is _horny_ and drunk Theo is _clingy_ ,” Stiles declared, his phone pulled out and pointed at the chimera. “You’re a match made in heaven.”

“Fuck you,” Theo muttered, his vision slightly blurry from the alcohol. “I’m not clingy.”

“I think Liam has the sole claim on that,” Corey teased, his eyes glistening. “Unless you guys have something to tell us.”

Theo’s brain was too far gone to process what the other chimera had said, but Liam evidently did, and he threw a pillow at Corey. “We’re not into threesomes, dumbass.”

“We’re having a threesome?” Theo asked, his mind latching onto that word. “Who’s it with?”

Stiles cracked up, keeping his phone pointed at Theo. “With me.”

The chimera’s nose crinkled. “Can we do it with Derek instead?”

“ _Theo!_ ” Liam yelled, as the pack exploded with laughter. Stiles squawked, hurt that Theo turned him down, and annoyed that he wanted it to do it with his _boyfriend_ instead. 

“Stay away from Derek, asshole,” the human said, narrowing his eyes at the chimera as he inched closer to the older werewolf, who looked like he was wishing he could be anywhere but here. 

“We’re not having a threesome, Theo,” Liam announced, smacking the chimera’s chest lightly. 

Theo blinked a few times, processing the words, and shrugged. “Okay,” he said happily, dropping his head onto Liam’s shoulder again, inhaling his scent. “Just let me know when.”

Everyone started giggling again, because apparently the chimera had skipped past the _not_ in Liam’s declaration. 

“I take it back,” Brett said, gasping for air as he held his stomach. “Drunk Liam might’ve been funny, but drunk Theo is a million times better.”

“You guys better not embarrass him tomorrow morning,” Liam said, glaring at the pack, and Theo hummed in agreement as he nosed the beta’s neck. 

“Unfortunately, that’s not an option,” Scott snickered, his head in Malia’s lap. “I can’t wait for tomorrow.”

Theo hummed again, because was his mind capable of understanding what they were talking about? 

Absolutely not.

__________________________________

Theo woke up to a headache the size of Texas. 

He groaned, shifting slightly in the bed, squinting his eyes open. He was alone in the room, and judging by how much sunlight was coming through the windows, it was already afternoon. 

The chimera jerkily got out of bed, every move sending a jolt of pain to his head, but he eventually made it to the bathroom. It took him another twenty minutes to make it downstairs, slowly stepping down as he tried not to roll down the stairs. 

The rest of the pack was clearly awake, their voices drifting from the kitchen, and Theo stumbled in. 

“Someone kill me and put me out of my misery,” the chimera mumbled as he dragged his feet over to Liam, who was sitting at the table. The werewolf immediately stood up, pushing the older boy down onto the seat. 

“Why would we do that when we can embarrass you instead?” Stiles taunted, and Theo’s head snapped up. The human had an evil smirk on his face, and the chimera knew whatever was going to happen next was gonna be torture for him.

“Just get it over with,” he groaned, sipping on the water that Liam had brought him.

“Well, for starters, you were weirdly interested in having a threesome,” Mason called out, and the tips of the chimera’s ears turned pink.

“Turned Stiles down, though,” Scott added with a smirk, leaning against the counter. 

“Glad I didn’t completely lose my mind,” Theo muttered, and Stiles threw a water bottle at him. 

“Said you wanted to do it with Derek instead,” Brett finished, his mouth quirked up in a wide grin as he threw an arm over Nolan’s shoulder. 

And now Theo’s face was definitely on _fire_. Liam sympathetically patted his shoulder from behind him, but the pack wasn’t done. 

“You were also super clingy,” Malia stated, pulling out her phone, because apparently this pack can’t go one day without taking a picture or video of something embarrassing. “You were _snuggling_ Liam.”

The picture was shoved in Theo’s face, and it honestly wasn’t a _bad_ picture of the couple. Just extremely embarrassing for the chimera. “How are you not hungover?” he asked Liam, tilting his head up. He desperately needed to change the topic. “I thought you were planning on getting wasted.”

“I _was_ ,” Liam drawled, running a hand through Theo’s hair softly. “Until my idiot fiancé decided to get blackout drunk and I had to take care of him.”

The pack snickered, as Theo leaned into Liam’s touch. “Well, it’s payback for last time.”

“What the fuck.”

Everyone’s attention fell to Stiles, who was staring at Theo with wide eyes. The chimera’s brows furrowed, just as confused as the rest of the pack, until Stiles took a step closer and he realized that he was staring at Theo’s _chest_.

_Fuck_. Theo was wearing a white shirt, which apparently was pretty see-through, and when he had tilted his head back to look at Liam, it had also slipped a little. 

“Take off your shirt,” Stiles demanded, and Theo snorted, trying to control his pulse so no one would notice that he was trying to cover something up. 

“Didn’t I already turn you down last night? You need a reminder?”

“ _Theo_ , take off your shirt,” Stiles said impatiently, as the rest of the pack looked at the two, perplexed at the sudden turn in the conversation. The chimera sighed and pulled it off. He was already embarrassed, might as well go the full mile.

Gasps echoed in the kitchen, and Liam quickly shuffled so he was in front of Theo, his eyes widening at the sight. 

There, on Theo’s chest, right on top of his heart, was a tattoo of an anchor. He had gotten it done a few days ago, and had been planning to show it to Liam last night, after getting engaged, but alcohol had ruined that plan. 

“Intense,” Mason said in awe, his hand in Corey’s. The pack seemed to share the sentiment, shock on all of their faces, save for Derek, who had been the one to do it. The meaning was pretty obvious- it was for Liam, his anchor, his heart, his _everything_. 

Speaking of, Liam was still frozen, his eyes glued to the tattoo. He blinked, pulling himself out of the daze, before lunging forward, jumping onto Theo’s lap. The chimera had no time to say anything before his lips were captured, the beta kissing him hard. He pushed back, silently telling Liam _It’s for you, it’s always for you_.

The pack had evidently picked up on the intimacy of the moment, and when the two finally pulled apart, the kitchen was cleared out. 

“I was going to show you last night,” Theo whispered, his lips still an inch away from Liam’s.

“I love you so much,” Liam breathed out, wrapping his arms around the chimera’s shoulders, burying his face into his neck. Theo’s heart skipped at the words, because they never really did get old. They would _never_ get old. 

“I love you,” Theo mumbled into the beta’s shirt, squeezing as hard as he possibly could. 

His life had been the opposite of easy. And Theo was atheist. But he thanked every god he could think of that his fucked up past had led him here, to Liam’s arms. 

Where he’d always stay.


End file.
